while i may now look like a culinary goddess. oh wait, that is only in my own mind? ok, well while i may not be a culinary goddess, at this state in the game i know a thing or two.

when i started cooking and writing six years ago, there wasn't really a game plan. i just did it. no real reason other than, why not? i didn't expect that it would result in falling in love with food and feeding people, or that i would inadvertanley teach myself how to cook. and i had no clue it would ultimately result in a career change.

but what i do know, is that i wish i didn't have to learn SO MUCH by trial and fire. sure, blogs were giving me recipes and the various mainstream food outlets offered hundreds of takes on the same damn thing. but no one was giving me telling me that if i smashed the garlic the skin would come right off. of that if i'm making something that's being blended there is no reason to waste a bunch of time mincing garlic. i wish someone had given me all the tips and trick that made me look and feel like a pro in the kitchen. you know, that gourmet at home shit.

o i'm brining you garlic 101. the things i WISH i had known when i was embarking on my cooking journey. maybe you know them, maybe you don't. it is always good to brush up on your skills. after all, we are always learning. 

garlic 101:
on the left is a head of garlic. on the right are five cloves of garlic. a head of garlic is made up of a bunch of cloves of garlic. not going to lie, if i'm going to be using a lot of garlic, i buy pealed garlic. i keep both on hand in my kitchen at all times. sometimes you need to roast a whole head of garlic, or stuff some up the backend of the bird, but keeping the pealed stuff on hand can really cut down on your time. 

one of the first mind blowing tip i learned in the kitchen was how to quickly peal garlic. i use a TON of garlic. sometimes, you can't get your hands on pealed garlic. and when you are pealing 20 cloves a time, it can be tedious.
to smash your garlic, you will want to use the thickest part of either a chef's knife (top) or santoku knife (bottom). 

place the thick part of the blade on a garlic clove. using the heal of your palm, press the knife into the garlic until you feel it smash beneath you. if you are feeling a little frustrated, you could also whack it with your fist (but be a bit more careful here). 

remove the knife and gently remove the crushed skin. 

if a recipe calls for roughly chopped, just chop up your crushed garlic. 

if you need to slice a clove, keep the clove as whole as possible when smashing.

to mince, just keep going on your roughly chopped. 

there you go. a bunch of things you needed to know about. now i bet you are wondering what to do with all your garlic. 

i love to keep garlic oil on hand. it lasts for a few days and is the base for many great dressings, marinades or croutons.

combine 5 cloves of garlic with .25 cup olive oil. 

store for up three to four days. 

xo, a

the last couple days in socal have been raining and i freaking love it. LOVE IT. the last two days were spent at home, fireplace blazing and lots of action in the kitchen. 

wes had to work all weekend, so i asked him what he wanted for dinner. no surprise, i got the same answer i usually get from my VERY italian husband. bolognese of course. 

since the rain was coming down, there was no way i was leaving the house for additional ingredients so i decided to adjust for what i had in the house. and thank goodness i did. this version is much lighter in fat, but is very full in flavor. perfect for a rainy day, or a just because we want to day. 

turkey bolognese
serves: 6
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 1 hour
total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
ingredients: 1 lb ground turkey. 2 slices thick cut bacon, chopped. 1 onion, diced. 2 celery stalks, diced. 2 carrots, diced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 1 tsp fresh oregano, finely chopped. 2 tbs + 1 tsp basil, finely chopped. 1 tsp dried thyme. 1 c white wine. .25 c tomato paste. 32 oz can crushed tomatoes (if you only have whole, you can crush them yourself). 1.5 c milk. 1 tbs salt. .5 tbs pepper. 1 lb your favorite pasta. grated parmesan for serving.

start by crisping your bacon pieces in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. about 15 minutes. stir occasionally to break the pieces away from one another and all sides brown. 

when the bacon is crispy and browned, add in the onion, carrots and celery. season with a few pinches of salt and a bit of pepper and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent. stir every couple minutes. about 5-7 minutes. 

push all your veggies to the sides of the pot. pat the turkey dry, season with half your remaining salt and pepper and add to the pot. cook until browned, breaking it up and stirring every couple minutes. about 7-10 minutes. as the turkey browns, work your veggies back into the mixture. 

stir in the thyme, oregano, 1 tsp of the basil and the garlic. cook until the garlic is fragrant. about 1 minute. 

when the garlic is fragrant, pour in the wine. cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated, stirring every couple minutes. about 5-7 minutes. 

stir in the tomato paste until everything is lightly coated. season with remaining salt and pepper and pour in the tomatoes. stir well to combine. 

simmer until the liquid from the tomatoes has reduced slightly. about 10-15 minutes.

while your tomatoes are simmering, heat a large pot of salted water over high heat until boiling. when your tomatoes have simmered, pour in the milk. stir well to combine and bring the bolognese back up to a simmer. once the sauce simmers, reduce the heat to low just to keep it warm. 

cook your pasta per the instructions. when your pasta is al dente, strain and pour right into your sauce. stir well to coat the noodles.
serve pasta topped with fresh parmesan and basil.

xo, a

turkey bolognese
serves: 6
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 1 hour
total time: 1 hour 15 minutes
ingredients: 1 lb ground turkey. 2 slices thick cut bacon, chopped. 1 onion, diced. 2 celery stalks, diced. 2 carrots, diced. 5 garlic cloves, minced. 1 tsp fresh oregano, finely chopped. 2 tbs + 1 tsp basil, finely chopped. 1 tsp dried thyme. 1 c white wine. .25 c tomato paste. 32 oz can crushed tomatoes (if you only have whole, you can crush them yourself). 1.5 c milk. 1 tbs salt. .5 tbs pepper. 1 lb your favorite pasta. grated parmesan for serving.

tart by crisping your bacon pieces in a large, heavy pot over medium heat. about 15 minutes. stir occasionally to break the pieces away from one another and all sides brown.
when the bacon is crispy and browned, add in the onion, carrots and celery. season with a few pinches of salt and a bit of pepper and cook over medium heat until onions are translucent. stir every couple minutes. about 5-7 minutes. 
push all your veggies to the sides of the pot. pat the turkey dry, season with half your remaining salt and pepper and add to the pot. cook until browned, breaking it up and stirring every couple minutes. about 7-10 minutes. as the turkey browns, work your veggies back into the mixture. stir in the thyme, oregano, 1 tsp of the basil and the garlic. cook until the garlic is fragrant. about 1 minute.

when the garlic is fragrant, pour in the wine. cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated, stirring every couple minutes. about 5-7 minutes.

stir in the tomato paste until everything is lightly coated. season with remaining salt and pepper and pour in the tomatoes. stir well to combine. simmer until the liquid from the tomatoes has reduced slightly. about 10-15 minutes.
while your tomatoes are simmering, heat a large pot of salted water over high heat until boiling.
when your tomatoes have simmered, pour in the milk. stir well to combine and bring the bolognese back up to a simmer. once the sauce simmers, reduce the heat to low just to keep it warm.
cook your pasta per the instructions. when your pasta is al dente, strain and pour right into your sauce. stir well to coat the noodles.
serve pasta topped with fresh parmesan and basil.